The Pirate and the Lady
by Damascene
Summary: A gift for a friend. Adriana knows better than to get tangled up with pirates but will her resolve soften when she meets a particular pirate lord? Rating may change depending on how I feel like writing the later chaps. Read and review, please!
1. A Bad Dream

_There was a loud noise, like a crack of thunder, and suddenly pieces of the ship's railing were somersaulting through the air. Adriana watched in horror as a second loud boom blew a sailor standing on deck to pieces, to chunks. His arm landed on the deck not a meter from her and skidded to a halt near her feet, all shards of bone and oozing blood. She screamed at the top of her lungs, barely hearing the rumble of cannons firing again and again._

"_MOTHER!" she wailed. She couldn't see her mother anywhere! Where had she gone? And where was her father? Sailors were running everywhere. The ship she sailed upon was attempting to defend herself, and the whole vessel rocked with the explosions of the guns. Adriana whirled, gripping her skirts with white knuckles, and ran. She ran up towards the prow, screaming for her mother, or her father, or anyone. She couldn't find them._

"_Mother! Where are you?" she shrieked, as the figurehead of the ship was blown away by cannon blast. She turned and ran in the opposite direction, hoping against all hope to find her mother towards the aft – but she had to avoid gaping holes in the deck and scramble at an awkward angle to make any progress. She clung to the railing and watched with wide eyes as men in all manner of ragged dress swung aboard the sleek ship. She gazed past them and saw a dark, threatening vessel flying a flag that had a big skull on it, and two crossed bones – or were they swords?_

"_She'll be down in Davy Jones' Locker soon enough, mates, take what ye can! And be quick abou' it now!" one of the ragged men shouted. _

_Adriana realized that the ship was going to sink, and she with it._

"Up! Up! Get up, you!" the woman shrieked. "What did I take you in for, eh, if you're not going to be useful?" She prodded the mass of blankets to which the remark had been addressed.

"Mmmphstrflff," came the reply.

"What's all that, then? None of that!" the woman said sharply, eyeing the bed. "You'll be ou' o' that bed right quick if I get the broom!" The blankets flew to the end of the bed revealing a comely young woman with pale skin, dark eyes, and long, tangled dark hair. She glared at the older woman and crossed her arms.

"I'm up," she stated flatly.

"Good," the woman spat, evidently satisfied. "Now get dressed!" With that she bustled from the room and could be heard clattering down a flight of stairs. In a few moments the scents of a hearty breakfast were wafting up to the second floor. The young woman, who had pulled her blankets back up to her chin, was finally persuaded to rouse herself and dress.

She placed her bare feet on the bare wooden floor and stared at the armoire across from the bed, considering her options. Finally she chose a wine-colored dress with a nice, tight bodice and pretty, flowing sleeves. After struggling to get into her petticoats and skirts and lacing herself into her bodice, she sat down in front of the looking-glass she had propped against the wall to brush her hair. In a mere fifteen minutes she was completely ready to face the day, so she sauntered lightly down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Ah, good. You've made it in time, then, Adriana," the woman remarked as the girl entered.

"Wouldn't miss breakfast for the world," Adriana replied. "Though I do wish you wouldn't wake me so harshly, mother. I was having the most awful dream and you gave me a terrible fright!"

"Sorry, love," said the woman. "'Ere, some eggs an' porridge!"


	2. All In A Day's Work

"Alright now, lovie, I'll clear up in here if you'll go out front and open up like a good girl," the woman said mildly.

"Yes, mother," Adriana replied.

Adriana wasn't a young girl anymore, but her mother seemed to harbor delusions to that effect. She decided to ignore them and live with them as best she could, so without further ado she marched to the front room and opened the drapes, letting the early morning light flood through the big bay windows. Then she unlocked the door and turned back to face the curtained doorway between shop and home.

"Mother, there's a man passed out in front of the shop," she called.

"Ah well," she heard her mother's muffled reply, "best to let 'im sleep it off. 'E won't 'inder the business."

The statement was, of course, true. Nothing short of a hurricane could hinder business as usual in the port town of Tortuga. Even a hurricane, Adriana thought, would have trouble getting attention in Tortuga. _The town_, she thought to herself, _is a sinner's paradise_. _A drunken, dirty place where people rarely think before they act and they only act on their basest instincts. Still, it is a place where people act freely (and very often drunkenly). Anything you might want to buy or barter for you can get in Tortuga. Material goods, human lives, love – there is nothing sacred. _She was interrupted in her musings by the bell that heralded the first customers of the day as they came through the door.

"'Ello Adriana, I've a problem," said the first girl as she placed a torn bustier on the shearing table.

"Evidently," Adriana replied archly. "It's a shame about the lace, Scarlett. How did it happen?"

"Some lousy John last night, 'e was a bit too eager y'see," Scarlett laughed. "Been out at sea for months an' months 'e said, s'if I care."

"Right, I'll see what I can do, though it won't look quite as good as new," Adriana commented from somewhere beneath the table as she searched for a matching color of thread.

"'Ello girls!" Adriana's mother cried out, pushing through the doorway with an armful of repaired trousers, shirts, dresses and petticoats. "'Ow're we all doin' this fine morning?"

"Beautifully," Scarlett replied. "Claudia, you remember Annabelle?"

"O' course, 'ow could I forget," Adriana's mother simpered. "Such a pretty girl!"

"And this is Lucy," Scarlett motioned to the jovial looking redhead on her right. "She tends the bar at the Black Swan."

"Nice to make your 'quaintance," Claudia said with a curtsey. "I'll leave you girls alone right quick – Adriana, 'ere's all the items we've done with already in case anyone should claim them."

Adriana nodded in response bent over the lacey bustier with her needle flashing in and out. _It's an awkward tear, _she thought, _poor Scarlett._ She remained silent and listened to the three girls as they gossiped.

"'E's bloody gorgeous!" Annabelle crowed. "The best lookin' man I've ever laid eyes on!"

"Well, that's all you'd best lay on him, girlie," Scarlett warned, "or I _will _'have something to say to you, and you _won't _like it!"

"Ooh, yeah," Lucy breathed. "Remember what dear ol' Scarlett did to Gisele?"

"Oh, come off it," Annabelle laughed nervously. "Let's not fight about Jack Sparrow. I'll find meself some other custom."

"Too right," Scarlett spat. Then she arched an eyebrow at her companions and whispered, "_I_ know. What about 'im 'oo actually _captains _the Black Pearl, mm?"

All three women burst into hysteric laughter. Adriana wasn't sure what was so hilarious. She didn't bother to ask; she was almost done. Just a few more stitches and –

"Scarlett, here's your bustier," she said as she stood. "It _is _a shame about the lace, but I've sewn it back as best I can…."

"S'perfect, Adriana!" Scarlett exclaimed. "'Ere's your fare, and thank'ee!"

With that the three exited the shop, still giggling a little. Adriana wished she had asked more questions, but she knew they had been discussing pirates. Somehow, she felt she oughtn't to be curious about pirates. They were all bad news. She stretched and went to sort the pile of repairs-to-be-done her mother had brought out. Picking up a navy-blue pair of trousers she sauntered back to her chair. She threaded her needle and reached for her scissors –

"Where're the bloody scissors?!" she wondered.

She tossed the trousers down on her armchair and dropped to the floor. On her knees she checked underneath the table, in the basket of thread, in the bolts of extra cloth next to the chair, and under the chair. No scissors.

"I just had them a_ minute_ ago!" she spat in exasperation. "Mother! Oh, mother! I've lost the scissors!"

"What's this? 'Ow'd you lose the scissors, hm? The second pair this month!" her mother raged as the clattered down the stairs. "You need to get a decent 'ead on your shoulders, girl, or you'll be stuck walkin' the streets like Scarlett and all them!"

Adriana glowered silently, waiting for her mother to offer up a new pair of scissors or an alternative solution. It would happen eventually, she knew. Five minutes later she was proven correct.

"Right, well love, 'ere's what you'll do," her mother sniffed. "You'll go the street over and you'll see the barber and ask 'im for something sharp what we can cut thread and fabric with."

Adriana nodded and exited the shop. Blinking in the hot morning sunlight, she stepped over the unconscious man on the ground and walk a little ways down the street until she came to a dim little alley between two clap-board buildings. She entered, walked swiftly through, and emerged one street over next to the barber's shop. She stopped for a moment, smoothed her dress and hair, and continued to his door.

"Good morning, Mister Todd," she called out as she pushed open the door.

"Ah, Adriana, my sweet," the barber energetically replied. "How may I be of service?"

Adriana flushed. The barber was an odd one, no doubt, with that streak of white in his hair and his dark, haunting eyes. He was always kind to her, though – sometimes too kind. She didn't know quite how she felt about his attention and that made her even more uncomfortable. Even worse, there was a man sitting in the barber's chair to witness her discomfort! _This is awful, _she thought to herself, and flushed a bit more.

"Ah, well, you see, Mister Todd, I've lost my scissors, and I need something with which to cut thread and fabric. I was wondering – "

"Of course!" the barber patted his pockets "you may take this."

She reached out for the shiny razor just as Mister Todd snatched it back from her hand. He flicked it open and scrutinized the blade.

"No blood," he muttered under his breath. "Very good."

He closed the razor and dusted it lightly and lovingly with his sleeve. "You may take this," he said brightly, offering it once more to Adriana.

"Th…thank you, Mister Todd," Adriana stammered. "You're too kind!"

She backed out of the door and hurried back towards her mother's shop. _That Mister Todd_, she thought, _he's really quite strange. And who was that man in the chair? He wasn't having a shave, and he wasn't having his hair cut… and he certainly looked like a pirate! _She shuddered a little. _It just goes to show that Mister Todd does other things with his time than simply shaving the gentlemen (or whatever they are) of Tortuga. He has dealings with pirates!_

Back in the barber shop, the man in the chair stood up and swept his large-brimmed hat from his head in a half-bow to the barber. A small capuchin monkey skittered across the floor and leapt to the man's shoulder as he straightened up.

"I thank ye, Mister Todd, for yer information and yer… services. 'Tis a shame, o' course. Briggs was a good sailor… but it had to be done." he said, grinning wolfishly. "Now, afore I take my leave of ye, I require one last thing."

"What's that, Captain?" Mister Todd queried in an emotionless voice.

"Who was the girl, Mister Todd?"


	3. An Awkward Encounter

The pirate captain with the monkey on his shoulder strode down the darkening street towards the tavern known as the Black Swan. He shouldered through the door, elbowing a youthful, drunken man and woman out of his way. He moved swiftly to the bar and demanded rum from the redheaded bar wench. He fingered the butt of his pistol as a brawl came a little too close to him – then ambled to a table in a dark corner to observe. It was late into the evening by now and he'd seen many of the lasses of Tortuga come and go with their gentlemen – but he had not seen the alluring girl with the long, dark hair who had appeared in the barber shop that morning. He was looking for her.

* * *

"Mother?" Adriana called out. "Mother! Where are you? May I take a pie down to Lucy at the Swan?" 

"Why not, why not. She's a good girl," the reply came from somewhere in their small parlor, a room away from Adriana. "Just be sure you watch out now, down with all them drunks and rabble-rousers and the like. Come ye back quick, too."

"I will," Adriana trilled as she draped a bit of cloth over the pie for Lucy. She was thrilled to be going out of the house so late – the sun had already set! Then again, her mother had a point. She knew it was dangerous for any young lady walking around Tortuga after nightfall, and as she passed the shearing table on her way to the door, she lifted Mister Todd's razor from its surface. After concealing it in the best place she could think of – in her cleavage – she continued on her way to the Black Swan tavern. She hoped Lucy would like the pie and have a few moments to chat.

She walked down the street at a quickening pace, worried about the pie getting too cold and the drunks getting too close. After taking a few winding detours to avoid things or people that could prove to be troublesome, she arrived at the Swan. It was packed. She had never seen the tavern so crowded. She stuck out her elbows and moved people as she saw fit to reach the door and finally made it inside.

"Lucy!" she cried, standing on her toes to see over to the bar. "Lucy, I've brought you some supper!"

"Pie!" Lucy squealed as she hurried around the bar and the patrons. "Ye've brought me a pie! Bless you for it – I'm starving. Come over 'ere, sit with me whilst I eat."

The two girls cleared themselves a space at the end of the long bar, shoving an unconscious, drooling sailor off to one side, and proceeded to eat and talk.

* * *

"Lucy!" the dark-haired girl cried. "Lucy, I've brought you some supper!" 

The pirate looked up from his drink to observe the entrance of so loud a female.

"Pie!" squealed the red-headed barmaid. "Ye've brought me a pie! Bless you for it – I'm starving. Come over 'ere, sit with me whilst I eat."

The pirate set his ice-blue gaze upon the girls as they tugged and pushed a passed-out drunk from the bar and sat bent close together to talk. This was the girl from the barber shop. She had the same pale skin and dark hair and the same bright eyes, not to mention the same flattering dress. She was much less timid now that she was out of the presence of Mister Todd. He had to admit, he didn't blame her. He employed the man to deal with delicate situations – any situation in which he had reason to dislike the idea of killing someone outright was delicate – but he'd hate to spend more time than necessary with Todd. He turned his attention back to the young women.

"Well, Lucy, I'd stay but mother wants me home soon," Adriana sighed. "Otherwise she'll think I'm dead."

"She's reason to worry," Lucy giggled. "Town's full o' pirates tonight. The _Black Pearl _made port today!"

"The one they used to say was cursed… yes," Adriana muttered, more to herself than Lucy.

"Aye, that's the one," Lucy said, hurrying around to the other side of the bar. "Thank ye for my supper!"

"Of course," Adriana replied. Without Lucy to talk to, there was no reason to stay. She glanced around the large, warmly-lit room. There were many ragged-looking men with earrings and hats, a few peg-legs and even one hook-hand. _Town's full of pirates indeed, _Adriana thought as she made her way carefully towards the door. Behind her the pirate captain in the corner stood, tossed a few gold coins onto the rough wooden table, and followed her path.

The night was darker when Adriana stepped outside. She glanced in either direction at the brawls and streetwalkers and drunken men before winding swiftly through the street in the direction of home. The pirate followed her, the small monkey followed the pirate, and they caught up with her as she turned onto the eerie street that housed the barber's shop.

"I be yer pardon, missy," the pirate growled, catching Adriana by the arm.

She whipped around, drawing the barber's razor from her bodice as she turned to face the man. She opened the razor slowly at her side, hoping it was hidden in the folds of her skirt.

"Can I help you with something?" she inquired icily, squinting to see the man's face. Adriana could see the outline of a large pistol at his side, but the brim of his hat was shading his face completely.

"Indeed ye could," he replied. "What I be wantin' to know first is yer name, missy."

"My name i– wait! Why on earth do you need to know my name?" Adriana exclaimed.

"Well t'wouldn't be proper or polite not to ask ye," the man said, folding his arms over his broad chest. "Or would ye prefer I only asked ye how much?"

"What?" Adriana queried, blinking at him. The moon appeared from behind a veil of cloud and threw a silvery light across the street and the man before her. _It's the man from Mr. Todd's shop today, _she realized. Then she realized what he was intimating.

"I am _NOT _a prostitute, sir, how dare you make that assumption! You have no morals, you are more mongrel than man, and you have no further business talking to me," she spat, suddenly pointing the open razor at the man's face. "Good night, _sir_."

She turned and made to run as fast as she could towards her home, but as she gathered her skirts she felt the man's hand on her arm once more. She froze; every muscle in her body tensed. Slowly she turned around and stared him straight in the eye, wondering whether or not she would have to stab him to make her escape. He removed his hand, and stared back at her, his chin tilted up as he regarded her.

"My apologies, miss," he said smoothly. "I'd no intentions of offendin' yer honor. But just in case ye hadn't noticed lately, ye're an attractive woman livin' in Tortuga. Ye can't blame me for the mistake."

He flashed her a wolfish grin before turning and walking back down the street. Adriana stared incredulously after him, razor blade hanging uselessly at her side.

_Well, _she thought. _I'll be damned._


	4. A Blade In The Dark

"Back so soon, are ye Captain Barbossa?" Lucy yelled across the tavern. "What'll it be, then?"

"Whiskey," the weathered pirate snarled at her.

"Whiskey neat, right up," Lucy sang back at him. She wasn't about to pay heed to his foul mood, or speculate on its origins. She poured his drink and took it to him in his customary corner. Before she could leave he'd caught her 'round the waist and sat her down next to him.

"What d'ye want, I've work to do y'know," she groused.

"The young lady who brought ye yer supper, Lucy m'dear," Barbossa paused as he drained his glass efficiently. "Who is she?"

"Ah, ye mean Adriana, do ye. Well, she's as fine a lass as ye could ever hope to meet. Seamstress's daughter she is, and she makes right bonnie garments too." The redhead paused to indicate her blouse, which had been made by Adriana. The pirate captain rolled his eyes and lifted one hand to rub his temple.

"What's wrong, then?" Lucy asked good-naturedly.

"I thought the lass was a whore," Barbossa said, with a sharp, wry laugh.

"S'long as ye didn't say so to her," Lucy shrugged, giggling a little at the very idea. There was a long silence in which Barbossa did nothing but glare at the girl before his eyes. "Please tell me that's not what ye were out doin' just now?"

Barbossa stopped glaring and nodded with a rueful, amused look on his scarred face. Lucy wondered vaguely how he hadn't earned another scar for his trouble and brought him another drink, on the house. Adriana, she knew, could be a little hellcat. One other unlucky fellow had made the same mistake in the time Lucy had known her friend, and he had lost an eye for it. She'd never known Adriana had the fortitude to stick her finger in a man's eye with such viciousness.

She leaned on the table as the man polished off another glass of whiskey and decided to visit Adriana first thing the next day to ask her all about it.

_Well, _she thought. _I'll be damned. _

She watched the figure of the man recede into the darkness, and then disappear completely as the clouds once more hid the moon. Surprisingly, she wasn't shaken. Not much, anyway. She was mainly curious. _What sort of pirate_, she wondered, _apologizes for a mistake like that? _She shook her head, bewildered and a little fascinated by the man's conduct. He had first thought her a whore and then apologized for offending her. _Pirate, gentleman,_ she mused. _Paradox._

She continued in this line of thought as she meandered towards the alleyway that would lead her home. So absorbed was she that she didn't notice the dark shape barely discernable in the deep shadows. As she made to pass by it, it stepped out to block her path, and spoke.

"Well, good evening, m'dear," came the slightly raspy voice she instantly recognized as belonging to Mister Todd.

"Ah, good evening, sir," she responded, holding a hand to her pounding heart, hoping it would quiet. "You frightened me, stepping out so suddenly like that! What on earth are you doing here in the alley, Mister Todd?"

"Nothing you won't enjoy," he quipped with the sound of a grin in his voice, as he rudely pinioned Adriana's arms at her sides and pushed her against the rough wall. She felt the forgotten razor blade fall from her hand and heard when it connected with the ground, useless to her now. _Shit, _she thought.

"Mister Todd!" she yelped. "Let me go!"

"Ah, I don't think so, my darling," he panted.

Still holding her arms at the wrists in one of his hands, he was laboriously rucking up her layers of petticoats with one hand. Twisting violently Adriana kicked him with all the force she could muster, and felt her foot reverberate with a bone-deep numbness from the impact. It afforded her the time she needed as Mister Todd doubled over, grasping his knee. She ran.

It did not take the barber long to recover though, and he sprang after her despite the nasty crunch of protest that came from his knee. Suddenly Adriana found herself pushed aggressively to the ground, one arm twisted behind her back and the other held fast by Mister Todd. His full weight was upon her limiting her movement. She filled her lungs to scream, only to find her mouth stopped by a violent, penetrating kiss. If nothing else had managed to take the breath out of her, or shake her presence of mind, the kiss did all of that and more.

Her mind screeched to a halt. She had never been kissed in such a violent, demanding manner. As Mister Todd pulled away, fumbling in the dark at the front of his breeches, Adriana turned her head spat the taste of him from her mouth. Suddenly she realized that her arms were freed, if only momentarily. _I have to get away, _she thought, _this is no time to panic, shake, or cry. _Of course, she realized then that she was beginning to do all three. Taking a deep breath she brought both hands up to Mister Todd's chest and shoved.

The man did not move. She felt him grip her with his legs to keep himself steady rather than toppling over. Quick as lightning Mister Todd had a blade in his hand – the same one he had given her in the morning which had hit the ground in their initial scuffle. The razor-edge rested as coolly on her neck as Mister Todd's gaze did on her face.

"Going to behave yourself now, love?" he inquired in a tone that could just as easily have asked if she would like more sugar in her tea.

The sun rose bright and clear over the port of Tortuga the next morning, illuminating stumbling drunks making their respective ways home. A few lingering women ambled the streets, their purses full of coins chinking gently together after a profitable night. Adriana lay in bed, her blankets pulled tightly over her head. She had no intention of rousing herself for breakfast, though she was not asleep. She heard the front door of the house and shop open and a familiar loud voice shot through the air.

"'Ello, Claudia?" Lucy sounded chipper.

There was a general bustling as Adriana's mother scooted to the kitchen door to greet the barmaid.

"Oh, Lucy! G'morning then girl. Ye'll be needin' something mended special-like, I 'ope?" Claudia queried, glancing hopefully at the bag Lucy was carrying.

"Er, well, p'raps later," Lucy mumbled. "I didna think to bring me chemise, but it does 'ave an awful tear down the seam. Right now though, is Adriana about?"

"Oh, aye, she'll be upstairs sleepin' like yon drunks," Claudia said with a barking laugh. "Go up, if ye like."

Lucy did just that, bounding up the lightly creaking wooden stairs to knock loudly at the door of Adriana's little chamber. There was no answer. Lucy being Lucy merely knocked louder before throwing open the door and tossing her bag to the floorboards.

"Up with ye, sleepyhead," Lucy crooned, poking the mass of blankets that was her friend. "I've a question or two to ask ye!"

"Well," came a hoarse voice from under the covers. "What?"

"First of all, why're ye hidin' under the covers on such a nice mornin'?" Lucy laughed. "Hung over? Did ye stay at the tavern without my noticin' hm?"

Adriana threw the covers back and glared at her friend. Lucy faltered. The expression being thrown at her was ice-cold.

"Alright," she said soberly. "What's wrong, then?"

Adriana closed her eyes briefly and began to talk in a low monotone. She recounted her evening, telling Lucy about being mistaken for a whore by a pirate, about his incongruous apology, and about her encounter with Mister Todd, the barber. Lucy's eyes widened in shock and no small amount of anger on her friends behalf.

"What… what did… Oh, Adriana, I'm so sorry!" she cried, leaning in to hug the other girl. "What are you going to do?"

"Do? What am I going to do?" Adriana demanded

"Well… aye," Lucy said slowly. "Do… like… oh hell, let's kill him."

The statement was made with such decisiveness on Lucy's part that Adriana had to laugh, just a little. Lucy was ridiculous.

"How do you propose we kill him?" She asked with an attempt at a smile.

"I have an idea," Lucy replied seriously. "Get out o' bed, wash up, have somethin' to eat… I'll be back later!"

Adriana gaped at her friend's apparent gravity.

"Don't go all bug-eyed," Lucy said briskly. "Trust me."


	5. A Plan Is Laid

**A/N:** This is going to be a long one, not only to make up for being so delayed but because we get into a little of Adriana's history. Enjoy!

Lucy hurried away from the shop, but instead of heading for her rooms above the tavern she headed directly for the harbor. She hadn't thought out the entirety of her plan, but she was relatively certain she could manage with the half-formed idea she possessed. If she knew Adriana, the girl would get over her shock and melancholy and be furious very soon. Lucy suddenly jumped sideways as a chamber pot was emptied from a window somewhere above her head. She glanced up darkly and continued on her way.

When she reached the harbor she was pleased to find that there were a few longboats and dinghies still nestled into the warm sand. Presumably their occupants were unconscious somewhere in the town. With a quick glance over her shoulder to assure herself that no one was watching, she began to drag one of the dinghies towards the water's edge.

"Bloody heavier than ye look, eh?" she spat at the small boat as she scrambled to grasp the oars. She could see her target floating a ways offshore, black sails looking tatty rather than menacing in the morning sunlight. _The Black Pearl, _she thought, _and hopefully Hector Barbossa, too. If he doesn't shoot me for coming to 'is ship_...

Meanwhile, Adriana did as her friend had advised. She was somewhat curious as to Lucy's mysterious plans, which she thought was most likely the hoped-for effect. She clambered down the stairs wrapped in one of her quilts and found that the table was set for her already. She ate gratefully, and then went to dress herself and face the rest of her day. She emerged into the front room and found her mother quietly doing some mending. Claudia looked up as her daughter entered.

Oddly she didn't feel the need to talk about what had happened the night before. She felt that somehow her mother would be far more upset than she was, and she didn't feel like dealing with a hysterical woman just at the moment. Without speaking or catching her mother's eye she crossed the small room and picked up a pretty patterned petticoat that needed to be hemmed. She nestled herself in her chair and began to work, all the while thinking.

She hoped Lucy would be back soon to explain what in God's name she was thinking of doing, but in the meantime… she found herself wondering about her entire life in Tortuga. She had vague, shadowy memories or a time before. There was a grand house with polished floors. She distinctly remembered how shiny the floors could be in that house. She remembered her nursery, and the servants who tended her. What she couldn't remember bothered her most of all – her parents.

There was a half-remembered scent that was something like lavender, long glossy brown hair, and full skirts to cling to or hide behind. Those memories made up her mother. Her father she remembered as a tall figure, as large as God. His voice came from far above her, and if she was a good girl he would lift her so she flew threw the air and could see his face. His eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled or laughed. He smelled of soap.

"Mother," Adriana began slowly. "What… can… I mean, can you tell me anything about… well…"

Claudia looked up and focused on Adriana's now blushing face. _I 'ope she's not goin' to ask me what I think she's goin' to ask me, _the woman thought to herself.

"My parents!" Adriana burst out. "Can you tell me about them?"

The old seamstress sighed, and looked older than Adriana had ever seen her. The mending she had had in her hands dropped softly into her lap as she twined her fingers together and considered what she would tell her daughter about the real parents that had been lost to her.

"I never knew them," she said flatly. "I can't tell ye any more than 'ow they… 'ow they died. And what ship they was on – and you, too."

Adriana stared. For some reason she had always assumed that her adoptive mother had known her parents, if only for a short time. She made a small, strangled noise and motioned for her mother to continue.

"Ye didn't think folk like yours would associate with people like me, did ye?" Claudia laughed shortly. "Nay, ye came from somewhere better than here, love. I don't know where. The ship ye sailed on was the _Mayfair, _I heard tell. There wasn't much left of it to know for sure.

I don't know where it was comin' from or where it was goin' but it only got a little ways past Tortuga before it was set upon by pirates comin' to make port. I heard the cannon fire even 'ere, that's 'ow close the _Mayfair _was to Tortuga. Some o' t'other ladies and I went down to the shoreline for to see what might've washed up. Sometimes things float ashore, ye know, that the pirates 'ave missed.

There wasn't much: planks, boards, a cask of wine or two, parts of – well, parts of a lot o' things. And you; you were on the beach soppin' wet an' lookin' whiter than a ghost. We thought you was dead.

One o' the ladies was a healer, though, and real good at her trade. She found ye had a pulse and lived yet so she set about clearin' the sea from yer lungs… anyway, I took ye home with me directly, and here ye been ever since."

Adriana sat like a statue for several long moments, taking in the history she hadn't thought to ask about before. Certainly she had known her parents were dead. They had to have been or she wouldn't have been here – they would have come for her. But she hadn't known they'd been murdered by pirates.

"My… my nightmares," she whispered.

"Aye, love." Claudia said softly. "Rememberin'"

"Who was it?" She questioned with sudden vehemence. "Who were the pirates? Who was their captain?"

"Well," Claudia answered pensively, "they do say it was a dark ship, black of sail. The say it was _The Black Pearl. _But ye know they'll say that whene'er they ain't quite sure on the truth."

Lucy rowed laboriously, her muscles unused to the movements required to propel a boat. She swore under her breath as she sweated in the hot sun but finally she glided into the shade of the_ Black Pearl_. Heaving a sigh of relief, she examined the massive hull beside her, hoping to find an easy means of getting to the deck. Of course, she realized, easy would be a relative term. She'd seen pirates climb up the sides of ships like ants going up a table leg – seemingly defiant of gravity. She glanced bleakly upward once more. She had no idea how they did it.

As she sulked and thought, a small, chattering monkey hopped up to the rail above her and peered down into her ship. Taking a bit of line, it swung swiftly down landing squarely on her head.

"CHRIST!" Lucy yelped, the boat rocking from her sudden jump into the air. The monkey hopped down onto her knee and chattered excitedly.

"Oh, s'only you," she breathed, clutching her chest in an attempt to still her wildly beating heart. "Ye little monster, what on earth – "

"Ye be lookin' for someone, Miss Lucy?" came a gravelly voice from far above.

"You, actually," she replied testily. "Throw me a bloody line or something, aye?"

A few minutes later, aided by Captain Barbossa, Lucy found herself on the deck of the infamous _Pearl,_ the ship that struck fear into just about every sea-faring heart in the Caribbean. It didn't look very frightening in broad daylight, but she gave it the benefit of the doubt. Moonlight could work wonders on both reality and imaginations. She shrugged, and turned to face the captain.

"I've a little favour to ask ye," she said primly.

"Oh, aye?" Barbossa sneered. "And what might that be?"

"Knock it off, will ye," Lucy snapped. "Don't ye be sneerin' at me and given' me any o' yer lip. I don't 'ave the time, or the patience. It's about Adriana."

The captain looked as though he would have liked to throttle Lucy, but instead masterfully controlled his features and motioned her towards his quarters to find out more. Such crew members as were conscious sniggered from the shadows at the bossy bar wench sassing the Captain Barbossa. _I can't shoot 'em, _he reminded himself with an impotently murderous glance at his first mate, _I need the lot o' them to sail me bloody ship! _

"Ye'll know a Mister Todd, then, Captain? Over on Fleet Street?" Lucy began.

"Aye, I do, though sometimes I wish as I didn't," Barbossa handed Lucy a glass, filled with an aromatic whiskey of much finer quality than they had in the tavern.

"Mmphm," Lucy made a noise. "Well, don't we all. I know Adriana must wish she'd never seen 'im right abou' now."

Over the course of three glasses of the fine whiskey, Lucy conversationally explained the incident – and then asked the pirate captain whether she could borrow some manner of weapon from him in order that she should take revenge upon the barber. She watched the captain's face carefully through the bottom of her glass as she consumed the last few drops of the burning liquid. She felt a pleasant fire burning in the pit of her stomach, and was thankful that years of working at the Black Swan had given her a head for alcohol. The captain nodded slowly, his weathered face drawn taught in carefully controlled anger.

"Aye," he muttered darkly. "Aye, I think ye may use whatever ye like – if ye go to that trunk behind the door – ye see it? Find yerself some weapon ye can handle. I'll be comin' ashore this evening. I'll bring ye the weapons if ye meet me just outside the Swan."

Lucy nodded her thanks to the captain and rummaged through the knives, swords and pistols so carefully piled into the large trunk. She chose a pair of dueling pistols with beautiful inlaid ivory on their handles. If she was right, she wouldn't have to use them come the evening anyway.


	6. Interlude

**A/N: **I'm so sorry; I've taken so long just to get this little bit done. It's unconscionable, really, and all I can say is that I've been really busy and slightly sick for a while now, so writing has gone kaputt. Please take this brief interlude as a sort of offering and promise of my actually writing another chapter soon.

The darkening night sky over Tortuga was a blaze of colors more beautiful than any sunset ever painted by the hand of man. Adriana sighed somewhat longingly just looking at it, and received a jab in the ribs from Lucy who was urging her to walk a little faster.

"Really, come on now, we can't be tarryin' in the streets right now. We've things to do," she growled softly.

Adriana nodded. She couldn't fathom what this impromptu trip to the tavern might have to do with Lucy's plan – whatever that was. She barely noticed when they turned down the miserable little alleyway in which she had encountered Mister Todd.

"Gyyah!" she squawked suddenly, seeing the front of the barber shop. "Lucy! Where the _hell _are you taking me?!"

"_Trust _me," Lucy said, tightening her grip on her friend's arm.

"Trusting you has never seemed like a worse idea than it does right _now_," Adriana seethed, trying to twitch her arm out of Lucy's iron grip to no avail. They kept up a brisk pace as they passed Mister Todd's shop, squatting rather forebodingly in its usual spot. Adriana shuddered. _Bastard,_ she thought. Lucy tugged insistently and they broke into a trot, reaching the tavern in record time.

* * *

Captain Hector Barbossa poured himself another glass of whiskey before taking up the dueling pistols, along with a few other sharp items he thought might be of use. He honestly didn't look forward to an armed encounter with the barber – the man was something not altogether human. Granted, that sort of thing did not normally bother Hector Barbossa, but there was something decidedly horrifying about Todd that raised all the hairs on one's body.

Regardless, if he felt a sense of unease at the idea, he certainly couldn't let Lucy attempt to take revenge for her friend – he was vaguely fond of the little barmaid. Free drinks aside, she was a sweet little thing. She was also providing him with a way to fix his initial blunder of assuming Adriana was a whore. He rolled his eyes at his own capacity for idiocy and set off for the tavern to persuade Lucy to leave this revenge business to him….

* * *

The barber Sweeney Todd glanced up at the large pane of glass that comprised most of the front wall of his shop. It was expensive, that much glass. He smiled whenever he chanced to regard it, remembering how much work had gone into its purchase. This evening, however, there was something more enchanting to observe than just the glass; the young sempstress and her fiery-headed friend were walking past his shop at a fast clip. _How enticing, _he thought to himself with a sinful smile curling itself along his lips. He seized two blades and walked out onto the street just in time to see the girls head towards the _Black Swan._ He followed. 


	7. The Plan Begins

**A/N:** I know it's short, but I have a life all of a sudden and it takes precedence over any number of other things, including but not limited to writing.

Adriana sat somewhat huddled in the corner booth – the one usually occupied by Captain Barbossa when the _Pearl _made port – sipping idly at the tea that Lucy had thoughtfully provided her. Lucy was fully occupied at the bar, bringing forth large quantities of alcohol for the sailors and regular drunks. Her mind, however, was not on her work. She was sure that Barbossa would come, and certain that he would bring the pistols she wanted. On the other hand, she couldn't be confident that the barber had seen them pass his shop. And if he _had _seen them, there was no certainty that he would follow, although she privately thought he wouldn't be capable of passing up a chance for some malevolent activity.

The door of the tavern swung open and hit the nearest drunk with a muffled thud, and in strode Hector Barbossa. His eyes grazed everyone in the room, taking in the sailors, ruffians, and drunks. He noted Lucy at the bar looking lost in thought, and Adriana in the corner looking about the same. He rolled his eyes. Obviously, neither one of them was fit for vengeance. _I knew it, _he thought to himself, thumbing the bitstock of one of the pistols at his side. _I'll be doin' this meself. _Heaving an almost theatrical sigh, he stomped over to the bar. He'd need a word with Lucy before he could assess the situation.

Adriana sat astray in her own musings. She hadn't noticed the pirate walk in, and she wasn't paying any attention to the conversation he and Lucy were now having. Instead she was considering the events of the past few days and wondering what her life might have been like if it weren't for the bloody pirates who had killed her parents. Occasionally she paused to wonder why, exactly, she was sitting in the Black Swan at Lucy's behest, and what in God's name Lucy could be up to… _some things it's better not to know, _she decided.

"I saw yer man Todd skulking about in the street, Lucy," Barbossa leered. "Are ye brave enough to go after him?"

"Absolutely," Lucy said, keeping her expression deadpan. "I'll not be lettin' any scum like that dishonor my friend! But, I can't do anything while Adriana's sittin' right here. I'm sure I'd best walk her home first, aye? Perhaps you'd consent to walk with us?"

Barbossa eyed her shrewdly, but nodded his assent. Lucy hoped to God that she wasn't putting herself and her friend in too much danger – but they would have the wily pirate captain with them. What harm could be done? She scurried over to Adriana and plucked at her shoulder.

"Adriana, I think it's time we be goin'," she intoned.

"What? Lucy! What's going on with you this evening? First it's of the utmost importance that we're _here, _and now we're to leave. Are you losing your – oh, that's a stupid question…."

Lucy looked offended.

"Come now, Miss Adriana," growled Barbossa, stepping up next to Lucy. "I couldn't tell ye what Lucy's thinkin' either, but I'm sure ye ought to listen to her."

Adriana gulped, and to her embarrassment felt herself blushing under his intense gaze. She swung her hair forward to cover the flush in her cheeks and got to her feet.

"C'mon," Lucy hissed, taking her arm. "Follow Barbossa and look sharp!"

Nodding, Adriana managed a small smile at the pirate.

"I do mean to apologize again for me grievous mistake the other night," the pirate captain said in a low voice, taking Adriana's hand and barely brushing it with his lips. His hand was rough and warm holding hers, and the slight unfamiliar scratch of his moustache against her skin made her shiver slightly.

"Ah, aha, think nothing of it," she almost-stammered, hoping she wasn't blushing once more. "It's really quite alright."

"Aye," Lucy chimed in, unable to bite her tongue. "A _po_lite pirate! That's guaranteed to please."

Adriana shot her friend a dirty look as they stepped forth from the tavern into the murky street. Night had blanketed the town in a silky, humid penumbra. The street was strewn with the detritus of everyday life, littered with prone forms and filled with people jostling one another as they walked. Life was busy at night in Tortuga, especially so close to all of the inns and taverns. Away down the darkened street that lead towards Adriana's home there was a glint in the shadows – Barbossa caught the slight movement with the corner of his eye.

The little party kept walking, but their talk ceased the further they went from the crowd of people by the Swan. The humid air muffled their steps. Mister Todd scowled as the three came closer. _Barbossa, _he growled to himself. He didn't want to have to tangle with the fearsome pirate to earn his prize for the evening – that was not how he had planned it at all. _Even so, _he thought, _perhaps this will make everything just _that _much more enjoyable. _As the companions came upon him, he stepped out from the pitch-black shadows.


End file.
